Laytonsville resident has been dominant so far
On Wednesday, Lisa Schlesinger of Laytonsville will try to continue her domination of the U.S. Women’s Senior Amateur at the Honors Course in Ooltewah, Tenn. After capturing medalist honors by seven strokes and firing the second best qualifying score in the 50-year history of the tournament (68-71 – 139), Schlesinger, 53, has won three match-play rounds decisively to advance to Wednesday’s quarterfinals against Mary Jane Heistand of Florida.
Schlesinger began her match-play dominance with an 8 and 7 victory Monday morning over Kim Cure of Iowa Park, Texas. That was followed by victories that went 15 holes each.
Schlesinger, 53, is a Maryland graduate who took up golf at age 35 after a professional basketball career. She also is a member of the D.C. Fastpitch Softball Hall of Fame. She won the Middle-Atlantic Women’s Amateur in 2007 and the Maryland Women’s Mid-Am in 2008 and 2009. This is her deepest run in a USGA event.
Schlesinger is the only local player among the eight still competing. Andrea Kraus of Baltimore and Natalie Easterly of Charlottesville lost in the round of 32. Arlene Hoffman of Alexandria fell in the opening round of match play.
Kraus, a 50-year-old playing in her first year of eligibility, was 7 up through 11 holes when an infraction was called against her caddie, who was using a piece of string, attached to a divot repair tool, to judge wind direction. Rule 14-3b was cited by a rules official. It says that a player may not use an artificial device for “gauging or measuring conditions that might affect his play.”
In the men’s U.S. Senior Am competition, at Kinloch Country Club in the suburbs of Richmond, no locals remain. Vienna’s Pat Tallent and the District’s Jack Vardaman got through one round of match play before falling in the round of 32. Legendary Virginia amateur Marvin “Vinny” Giles of Richmond, who became the oldest winner in event history in 2009 and founded Kinloch, also lost in the second round of match play.
Rockville’s Marty West, who advanced to match play for the seventh time in the last nine years, lost in the round of 64 in 19 holes to Stanford Lee, 59, of Heber Springs, Ark. Lee won two more matches and will face his brother, Louis Lee, 55, also of Heber Springs, in Wednesday’s quarterfinals.
This is the first time brothers have met in the event’s history. It is also the first competitive tournament for Louis Lee since 1985.
